Transcript for Polar Plunge Causes Temperatures to Plummet as Icy Rescues Are Underway

And our next big story in the news tonight, it is back. The brand-new polar plunge about to hit the midwest and the northeast with snow, ice, and bone-chilling temperatures again. ABC's meteorologist, ginger zee, now, with the icy rescues already under way. Reporter: A suspenseful rescue on a lake in Missouri. Firefighters making their way to a man trapped in the frigid waters. All that drama on the ice after the recent bout of mild air. And it all comes to an end tonight. In Roanoke, Virginia, they are getting ready for a plowable snowstorm. Winter storm warnings in place from western North Carolina to parts of Connecticut. And behind it? A surge frigid air. And, no, this is not the polar vortex. The polar vortex is a real thing. It's a circulation way up in the atmosphere above the poles. It is always there. Pieces of it break off in the winter. The chunk we got in early January was a doozy. It brought some of the coldest air in decades. From that guy letting in the cold air in Chicago to the frozen fountains in Atlanta. This time it will not be as cold. It's more the typical January air circulating around the polar vortex that is still far to the north. Simply put, a push of bitter cold with dangerous windchills and advisories for at least 11 states. And the difference this time is going to be how long the cold air sticks around. I'll show you that in just a moment. But first, the snowstorm we have to talk about it because places like Washington, D.C., have not seen as much snow as they're going to get tomorrow through tomorrow night, in almost three years. Yes, we're talking some four to eight inches in pink. And that could be conservative in some places. Could see even more. That's why we've got winter storm warnings in place. And now, that cold air, I promised you. Let's look at it. We have 20s, 30s, in some places. But, boy, that freezing mark would be nice because we're going to feel like we are sub zero for much of new England, parts of the northeast. And again, this lasts all the way through, in waves, until the end of the weekend. Diane? And we just thawed out. Thank you so much, ginger zee.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

The Snow, Cold and What's Ahead in the Forecast

Ginger Zee on how long we can expect the snow and cold to last.

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